Needed: Virus and Weeds

Pentecost 7a14, July 27, 2014 (Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

What does God's influence in our lives and the life of the world look like? ( 2x)

 

Might God's influence be like dandelions: the love and forgiveness of God just keeps turning up, even though people may not want it nor expect it to?

 

Or, might the influence of God upon or lives and the lives of the world function somewhat like a virus: there really isn't any cure or protection against it- it just keeps spreading within ourselves and beyond?

 

Or, might the influence , the love of God just be "out there, moving" seeking us, to change our hearts and minds, our affections and priorities each and every day – so that we cannot escape what really matters and then live with great joy and sacrificial love in seemingly the most ordinary and yet profound way?.

 

Might God's influence and direction in life be like any of this, or even all of this?

 

There is a woman who grew up in the church. Well it is even more than that. She grew up attending a parochial school. Let me tell you. She is strong-willed and strong minded! When she was quite young, she fell in love. Her father warned her about this particular man – but his warning concern was like water running off a Labrador's coat. The resulting marriage wasn't good. He beat her. He sought to control her through fear and criticism. Eventually she managed to leave him. For a long while she stopped going to church. She even stopped talking to God. But then one day feeling a strong "tug" she went back to church. She spoke to the pastor. The Pastor told her, "It's more than OK for you to question God, to wrestle with God, even to yell at God"... Once again she began to speak to God, to wrestle with God. She still does.

 

Now, there was a second woman. This woman loved her children beyond the description of any mere words, however articulate. This woman lived in a country where armed conflict was ever present. Government, police forces and those who saw the government as corrupt and the police as simply embodying whatever the corrupt government instructed them to do were at odds. Both sides recruited boys, as young as 12 to become violent, to take part in the dirty work of hurting, threatening and even killing the "others". This mother knew she had to leave. She must get her children away from all such influences. To escape she had to travel hundreds of miles, swim across a river, enter a country illegally and find work under the table. She did all this. Then she applied for immigration to our country, Canada. Upon arriving she worked very hard. Her hands literally flew over her sewing machine both by day and night. One by one she brought  4 of her 5 children. What celebrating there was. As her children arrived she brought them all to church. She wondered out loud to her pastor, "Why do Canadian Christians seem so reserved in their worship of God? Why isn't there more dancing and more singing and more eating? Why do we stop worshiping after only 75 minutes? "In my country people," she said, "people walk miles to the church every week. We stay hours, singing and praying and then singing and praying some more. Only when darkness falls do we begin to go home". She couldn't understand Canadian's obsession with time. How she enlivened that congregation. Her smile lit up the room. The piñata she would bring to the children's Christmas concert had everyone standing on their tip toes and all the children scrambling for candy. That concert became a fiesta – a feast, a festival of joy. Many of the people loved her. But a few couldn't or just wouldn't understand.

 

One day she told her pastor something that made him weep. She said, "I have cancer!" The congregation prayed and prayed and prayed. The cancer grew. The pain of her family and the people of the congregation increased. She cried, laughed and sang. She said, "I am sad, but not afraid for me."  As her illness spread within her body the need for her to have increased care in a respectful place became more pressing. In that city it cost about $150 per day to stay in such a car facility. This was money that neither she nor her family had...  That's when another woman took action.

 

This woman came to the pastor's office and said, "Pastor, I would like to help my friend with cancer. I want to write a check to cover all of her expenses at the hospice house for as long as she needs to be there. But I don't want her to know who the donor is. I don't want her dignity or the dignity of her family to be compromised at all." The pastor smiled and said, "Done".

 

The mother of the children, battling with cancer lived nearly 3 months in the hospice house. She was surrounded each day by her children and grandchildren, by an entire host of people from the church and the community. Very early on the staff of the hospice house also came to love her. She died amidst tears of loss, of hope, of joy...

 

Let me ask again: What does God's influence on our lives and the lives of the world look like? Might it look like any of the people whose lives I have just told you about? Like dandelions that keep springing up in the most unexpected places? Like a virus that spreads and spreads, crossing boundaries that no one thought possible?

 

Is it possible that the first woman I told you about – the strong willed stubborn, argumentative person with God is also the third woman who writes a blank check in order to love the mother of all these children unconditionally?

 

Jesus says that the reign of God is like a tiny weed that becomes a huge shrub and then instead of being destructive like weeds often are – can bring life and protection to creatures who so desperately need that. Jesus says that the reign of God is like something that often is seen as destructive or even dangerous but then becomes transformative bringing new life to everyone and everything that surrounds it. Jesus says that the reign of God, this love of Christ has so much value that once it "gets inside of us" we realize that everything else is of secondary importance. This love, this guiding influence of God becomes that which shapes and directs us – calling us to great joy, great passion and sometimes great sacrifice.

 

Do you see the reign, the very love of God around us and within us – even in such seemingly ordinary things like piñatas, children, friends and neighbors, those who irritate us, illness and birth, suffering and death?

 

Do we realize that we (personally and collectively) are being called to be part of this very influence and reign of God here and now?

 

O God give us eyes to see, ears to hear, open minds and generous hearts to be set on fire, for Christ's sake, and the sake of the world that you love so much! Amen.

 

 

"Come On!"

Pentecost6a14, July 20, 2014 (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 with Romans 8:12-25 in b.g.)

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a judge in a court of law? Would that be easy: to hear different presentations of evidence, deeply consider different perceptions of what has happened, and then to render a verdict, realizing that said verdict will impact a number of people for the rest of their lives and perhaps even set a precedent that others may be required to follow. Will your rendered verdict give more emphasis to the letter of the "law" or to the spirit of the "law"? Blessings in all of that.

 

I reflect upon these questions in the light of the Gospel lesson. I also reflect upon these questions as judges are frequently criticized these days for being "too lenient" or out of touch with "reality". What verdict might we render in their position: for a drunk driver that has young children who has killed or maimed a person or persons? What might our verdict be for a person who has molested another person – younger, even under sing their influence. Such a verdict  may seem "cut and dry". But when you learn that the molester also had been molested as a child – and that nothing was done about that, will that revelation impact your verdict? Should it?   

 

It's quite easy to cast judgments from afar. We human beings have the propensity to do that. We can make quick judgments about so many people, so many things.  It may be another's driving habits – even though we have no idea of their age nor their circumstance. Or, such judgments may involve thoughts about politicians we don't really know. How can we understand the many factors they must take into account before deciding upon a course of action?  Or, our "judgments" may be cloaked as stereotypes: police officers, pastors, teachers, youth. Can or should all police officers or pastors or youth be expected to act exactly the same or thing exactly the same?

 

Are such "judgments" the result of the perceptions we already have of the world, limited though they may be? Or might such "judgments" somehow try to make "sense" of the way things are – so that we might at least mentally have some "absolutes" that then in our eyes make us feel or look good?  

 

There is no doubt: evil is alive and all to "well" in this world. A person who is driving while impaired kills innocent persons or people. Some persons prey on others: financially, sexually, even in terms of slandering other's reputations. In addition there are forces destructively working in our world that defy the imagination: nations are being ripped apart by the drivenness of some to undertake genocide/ a number of cultures are marked by racial and or sexual prejudice. We produce enough food to feed everyone. Nevertheless millions are starving, including many, many children. Evil is  at work in the world.  It rages against all that is good, of God.

 

But evil isn't just "out there" in others. Evil is also in here – in our hearts and minds, in the church. If you doubt me dare to take a personal inventory – at your thoughts, your actions, your words. Are we ever or often less than charitable?  Sometimes what we say and certainly what we think can be just downright nasty. Does putting others "down", somehow make us  "better"? Or, for an inventory list, ask yourself this: are you ever surprised by your own actions: a response to a joke, to being cut off in traffic, to a particular politician's words or success? Are those responses pleasing to God?

 

This doesn't mean that we are all "bad" individually or collectively.  In our inventories may we also see the beauty and wonder of so many both in the church and outside of it. There are people who do for others - often quietly, unseen. There are exceedingly busy people, who want to contribute to something and someone beyond themselves. There are people who in being graciously touched by God are gracious in return. Halle, hallejuah. Thanks be to God.

 

And yet, our lives are always a mixture of God's goodness and of that which is opposed to God Sometimes we feel that we can work this all out or that evil is out there but not in here, within us. Such thinking leads to serious problems. Yet, in our mixed state of being both saint and sinner, we must make life decisions about how to proceed, whom to trust,  in what we will invest our lives.  

 

This is at least some of what Jesus' parable is about. Both the very conclusion and the explanation are about the final judgment but the vast majority of the parable itself is about the in between times, the here and now. What is ultimately good and what is ultimately evil is not always so clear to us. There is more to the book than just its cover. Beware. God alone sees completely. God alone will make the final discerning judgement.

 

How good this is. We are not God! We are not the final nor ultimate judges. And miraculously, so contrary to many human actions, God waits. In waiting God works to change the weeds, to transform them, bit by bit or sometimes even suddenly and radically.

 

This is good news – for us individually and collectively. If the judgment were final and instantaneous – where would we be? If our eye caused us to sin, or our ear or our mind, and they were then cut off from ourselves, others and God, well what would be left?

 

Thankfully God is both gracious and holy. God continues to work even now, to embrace us, to show us ourselves, to move us towards God for forgiveness and new beginnings. In these ways we are like new shoots just beginning to push through the ground. God in Jesus through the Holy spirit is the sunlight, the water and the caregiver we so desperately need, all in One. Each day this God works to encourage us to grow and live, perhaps even silently whispering, "Come on! Come on. Together we will do this!" There will be new life.

Thanks be to God – who not only plants us but who keeps on working so that new life will be born, grow to maturity both within and without. Thanks be to God for God's holy and merciful judgment – which is both patient and ever working and some day will put an end to evil and death.

            In these in between times, by God's grace, "Come on! Come on!" Amen.

 

 

Wonders Never Cease

5^th Sunday after Pentecost, July 13, 2014 (Matthew 13:1-9a with Isaiah 55:10-13 and Ezra 3)

Main thought – the love of Jesus (this self-giving, this presence of Matthew 28, this hope foreshadowed in Isaiah 55 – return from exile; and Ezra 3 – the building of the temple to mixed results) bears fruit – is good. Your kingdom come.

Malady – often we won't or can't  hear this proclamation amidst the glitz, the noise, the anxiety of our lives. See the original context of Matthew (a dominated smaller country under empire.) Or we can't or won't believe it (see the earliest disciples)

Means – mostly the Gospel lesson.

L   O   V   E.  It's a four letter word. Love. But what does "love" mean for anyone who would follow Jesus?

 

L  O  V  E. God, the Creator of the universe continues to send the rain in summer, the snow in winter. The earth continues to yield produce. By God's grace there is still more than enough food produced to adequately feed everyone on the globe IF ONLY we could devise some way to distribute the food to those who are most hungry, even starving. All of this gives witness to God's love. Every time you bite into an apple, munch on a salad, sip a glass of water, we can know this. Thank you God. Thank you for your love!

 

But there are also complicating factors. We witness floods both far and near. Tornadoes "touch" down destroying buildings, vegetation, animal and human life. Hurricanes wreak untold devastation. Droughts seek to suck the life from so many. Then there is also fire. I will never forget the Okanagan Fire of just over 10 years ago. The blazing, ever growing fire lit up the night.  We  human beings were unable to stop the fire's insatiable appetite.

 

Some of these complicating factors may be the result of human error, even human folly. But some of them seemingly  just happen. Lightning strikes. Some call such happenings, an "act of God". What then do we say of God, to God?

 

The reality of God's love is a huge factor in our lives. God's love for the world is the very foundation of Christian faith. But how can we be so "sure" that God actually loves us, if all we examine is only nature?

 

Our children at VBS have been learning of God's activity in terms of God's workshop of wonders. There are so many examples in the created world whether we imagine with God, work with God, grow with God, build with God or even walk with God.

 

But God's clearest and most demanding activity of love for the entire human race is revealed in God's becoming human. God becomes ONE OF US! God is born as a baby to Mary. This Jesus does so much in his short life. I can't even begin to tell you all of that today. After all, some of you are in a rush to get home to see the World Cup Final. . .But do let me tell you this.

 

Jesus both confronts and embraces us with God's holy and merciful love for us. Jesus reaches out and touches people no one else will. Jesus feeds the hungry, without expecting anything in return. Jesus frees the condemned. Then, when both the religious and military powers are so upset by what Jesus is doing that they kill him, Jesus asks God the Father to ...... (are you ready for this?) FORGIVE THEM.

 

His closest friends disappear when he needs them the most, as he is being slandered, tortured, humiliated and then executed. Miraculously,  He not only forgives them, but in three days as he is raised he returns to them. Then He says, not get lost or even "I am so disappointed in you" but rather, (are you ready for it?), "PEACE BE WITH YOU"

 

Just who will Jesus entrust with his incredible message of love and forgiveness, of his overcoming death and hatred for us? Can you believe it (pun intended!)? He entrusts those close friends who had already completely failed him. He tells them to get up, go out, to share His love, His power with everyone they meet. No holds barred!

 

And...  they do this. Those eleven male followers of Jesus – and a whole variety of women who had been trapsing around the country side go out and show others Jesus' love. They do this in  various ways. Some sell their possessions and then share the proceeds with others so that none are hungry or homeless. Some travel to foreign lands to proclaim Jesus' message. Some stay right at home and work hard with their family, friends and acquaintances.

 

Is this easy? No! For some reason, many people do not want to hear of God, to be called to share with others. To God, with God, everyone is important. By God's grace our hearts and minds can be transformed! By God's grace we may even become agents of transformation.   

 

To be sure, I sometimes get discouraged. The numbers of people in North American churches are dwindling. A number of governments and corporations sometimes see the Gross National Product or profit margins as more important than those who are financially most vulnerable. Far too often church people fight amongst themselves and or put others down. Some even maim, kill or exclude each other in the name of God or Jesus!

 

It's quite possible Jesus understands all of this. He spent three years with a small group. They saw him do and be – amazing realities.  When the crisis of his betrayal, suffering an death confronted them, none of them really lived as if Jesus was God with skin on. One of them sold him out. At least ten others abandoned him.

 

But Jesus doesn't give up on them. Nor does he give up on us. He encourages us to hear Him, to see His life. He loves us. He calls us to love others. At times it may seem that what we do doesn't matter in the grander scheme of things. But let me tell you, that just isn't true. We may not see it right away - nor even in our lifetimes. Nevertheless God is at work, EVEN THROUGH US!

 

So  let me tell you two stories.

 

Rosa Parks, a black woman in Montgomery Alabama sat on a bus. She was told that she had to move to the back of the bus, because she was a black woman. But Rosa refused to change seats. And the civil rights movement was activated. It continues to be needed. Yet by the grace of God working in and through a whole variety of people, much has been accomplished.

 

A second story. For decades Muhammed Yunus revolutionizes the phenomenon of micro-credit. By giving small loans, mostly to women who could not otherwise afford or qualify for credit, he in effect provides the seed for thousands to start and sustain their own businesses. This initiative has a ripple effect economically, impacting families and communities across Bangladesh and spreading from there to the rest of the world.

 

Who knows what your particular gifts are, in the expansive dream of God to spread God's love throughout the world?

 

Firstly we need to hear, listen and soak up this love of God ourselves. This is an ongoing practice because there are so many forces within and without that seek to remove us from the experience of knowledge of such love. These resistant forces can  drive us to fear, selfishness, even apathy. But as we hear and are embraced again and again by the love of God in Jesus – we too are sent out to generously and indiscriminately share His love. We may not always be welcomed. However, God's love will not return empty. Our work will not be in vain.

 

I want to close with a little ditty that I learned as a child. It speaks of the love of God as we see and experience it in Jesus Christ, it is profoundly true.

 

"Love is something when we give it away, give it away, give it away, .... love is something when we give it away we always end up having MORE! " (may be sung or read)

 

God bless us in receiving and giving away God's love in Jesus Christ. Perhaps the very universe is the workshop of wonders, the wonders of God. God wills to do the most extraordinary things - even through us. Amen.

              

Surpassing Hydraulics

 Pentecost 4a14 (Gen. 24:34-67), Romans 7:15-25a, Matthew 11:16-30, July 6, 2014

 

There are days and nights when I near or perhaps am driven to near despair. Can you identify?

 

We witness the abduction of a 5 year old boy and grandparents from their Calgary home. We see the abduction of 3 teenage Israeli boys from their loved ones and then hear of their bodies being uncovered in a cave.  Only a few days later in seeming "retaliation" a Palestinian boy is burned to death. Nor are we strangers to our "own" ongoing violence: persons against persons, even men against women they supposedly "love".  

 

If you are like me we not only shake our heads but our hearts are broken. A man is refereeing a recreation league soccer game. During that game he is assaulted by one of the players and dies. His two young sons are left without their dad. 

 

Some people encourage us to stay away from the news. But do we escape such reality then?

 

Or might such reality also live and rage within us?  

 

St. Paul speaks of the good that he would – but that he can't incarnate. Some scholars debate whether this is Paul's personal confession or rather a universal observation of all of humanity. Still others claim that this is a description of one's life prior to conversion or after conversion.  I would suggest it is all of these.

 

We are too often hesitant to speak of sin, unless it is someone else's. Or, we may tend to think of sin as something really bad that someone else does or is somehow done to us. If we do admit our sin we may think of "our" sin as it were some minor transgression - like serving the wrong wine or forgetting that we should have purchased gluten free bread.

 

But as delineated in the Bible SIN is not only a problem, it is the illness at the heart of our being – the illness that brings along with it separation from God, others and creation. As such sin ushers in death, both figuratively and literally.  Sin, from a Biblical perspective is our problem.

 

Sin is rebellion against God, attempts to deny that God is God, and that we are the created ones. Part and parcel of sin is the refusal to admit that we are always in desperate need God's help: God's direction for our lives, and God's forgiveness. The consequences of our sin is all around us in both big and small ways.

 

There is human caused climate change with rising waters of the oceans and ever increasing massive storms. But we want what we want and we will have what we will have, right?

 

There is our refusal to pray in disciplined ways, to read and study God's Word, to seek God's direction in our employment of whatever we may call or think is" ours". We forget that every "thing" and every person has been entrusted to us by God, for the good of all.

 

There is also our refusal to admit that often we are wrong. We do need each other's forgiveness.  

 

Underneath all of this lies our stubborn refusal to admit that we need help. Our lives are often out of control. We so desperately need God's direction and aid in all the aspects of our lives. 

 

This doesn't imply that we don't have responsibility in the living of our lives. What this does mean is that "on our own" we miss the mark, our destiny, again and again and again.

 

We need God's help and direction, God's love and forgiveness. Just as surely as a baby needs one who will invest their lives in caring for him/her we need God! Just as surely as we need the sun, the soil and the rain, we need God to deliver us from ourselves, from each other. We need a heart and mind transplant each day – so that we do not become bitter, cynical, apathetic, self-centered and self-obsessed. All of these qualities lead to numbness, despair and ultimately death.

 

Even John the Baptist struggles with the reality of Jesus as God: he who baptized Jesus; he who came preaching a baptism of repentance; he who kicked in his mother's womb when Jesus' mother showed up at his door.

 

This believing in, working for, actively trusting God is not without resistance both from within and without. John is thrown into jail for questioning Herod's illegitimate relationship with Herod's brother's wife. It's not holiday reading – as his head is eventually presented to Herod on a platter. We are visually reminded that the forces of evil do not stand idly by while the work of God in Jesus Christ – love, truth telling, justice and mercy are being carried out.

 

It's no wonder then that while John the Baptist is in prison he has questions. He sends his disciples to point blank ask Jesus, "Are you the One to come, or shall we wait for another?"

 

John thought God's ultimate reign, the kingdom would come with a big bang, fire and blood, maybe  even violent exclusion. Meanwhile Jesus was eating with all kinds of people, welcoming them, speaking truth, but in different ways than John. Still, Jesus is doing the works of God – the blind can see, the lame can walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear. Even a dead person has been raised.  The poor have good news preached to them. Jesus says, "Wisdom is vindicated by her deeds". Sometimes the proof is in the pudding.

 

We too have questions. Who is the hand, the direction of God revealed to? Is it the jihadists or the fundamentalists who are both so certain that they and they alone are right, doing God's will? Or, is the work of God captured in a box of doctrine – that claims, "here in our understanding is God? Or, might God reveal God's self to the weak and simple – in ways that will humble all of us?

 

There is so much going on within and without. 

 

It's at this point that Jesus utters something so wonderful but that may have been frequently misunderstood. He says, "Come to me, all you that are weary and carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

 

This is an amazingly wonderful word. Who among us hasn't carried or isn't carrying heavy burdens? Jesus invites us to approach him, draw near, cry out.

 

We all need rest. The third commandment demands this for us. Jesus claims that we can count on him. It's not all up to us. Not death, hatred, changing violence, not even climate change.

Does this then give us an excuse to do nothing – to exercise extremely limited responsibility?

 

Listen again: Jesus says, "Take my yoke upon you".

 

His yoke isn't the yolk of an egg. Rather his yoke is a harness for two animals who are working at the direction of their master breaking ground, hauling whatever it may be for the well being of the entire people, family and community.

 

Often the younger and or more rebellious animals would be yoked with a more mature, experienced animal. "Take my yoke upon you". Make no mistake this is an important yoke – to love this world, to care for the down and out, to speak truth of God and ourselves by the ways we daily live.

 

But the entire metaphor of yoke is this: WE ARE NOT ALONE. Jesus is both with us and for us. He will not abandon us. We can learn from him: this co-creator of the universe, this One who journeys to the cross , who can see right into our minds and hearts. As He wills to be joined with us He is gentle and humble in heart.

 

Oh God, help us to be so yoked! Walking with him, transformation begins to overtake us. We begin to experience deep in our hearts that we are not alone.  As heavy as the responsibilities and calls of our lives sometimes are, we need never lift by ourselves.

 

Hear Jesus' invitation: come to me you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens. Even now He draws near to us.  Amen.

 

 

The Discomfiting Provision of God

Pentecost 3a14 (June 29, 2014) Genesis 22:1-14 with Romans 6:12-23 and Matthew 10:40-42 in bg.

O precious Ones of God, grace to you and peace from God the Creator, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit three in One.... and oh, also some discomfort....

Why would I say that, discomfort? Don't we attend church to be comforted, even to feel good?

 

To be sure, sometimes comfort and even "good" feelings occur to us and among us while we worship God at church. But there are other times, times when God challenges us to the depths of our being. The resulting challenge may stir up within us many different kinds of feelings – some of which are far from "good".

 

See Abraham today. I used to skip over this account as I read our Children's Bible with our youngest daughter because I didn't want her 5 year old "self" to hear this. I felt that she was just too young to deal with it. Truth be spoken, we may all be too "young" to deal with it. Maybe it is meant to deal with us!

 

Isaac was Abraham's beloved son. Not only was Isaac Abraham's beloved son, his only son still within the household, but Isaac was THE CHILD OF PROMISE. Yes – that very promise God had uttered to Abraham and Sarah so many years ago. They would be blessed with descendants, more numerous than the sands of the seashore. Through their descendants many, many others would be blessed. So it is.  Isaac is Abraham's beloved, beloved in ways that transcend any and all explanation, comprehension.

 

Together, Abraham and Sarah had waited and waited and waited - hoped and hoped, prayed and prayed for the birth of any child. Just when they had given up on it ever happening, when they were convinced that it was impossible for them, God blesses them with this child, their son, Isaac.

 

The name, Isaac, means "laughter". How they must have laughed,- during their pregnancy,  maybe even giggled. How they must have then thanked God. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord. Yes, GOD IS SOOOO  GOOD!

 

But then comes our text, another word from God. "ABRAHAM!"

 

Abraham responds. "Yes... Lord. Here... I... am." God proceeds. "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and ... OFFER HIM THERE AS A BURNT OFFERING ON ONE OF THE MOUNTAINS THAT I WILL SHOW YOU."

 

Oh dear Lord, my God! What would you do if you heard in some way a word from God to kill any child, let alone your own child? Doesn't God charge us with loving and protecting our children at all costs? I truly believe that. How could anyone, especially Abraham contemplate such an act?

 

Sometimes Scripture deeply disturbs me. I take these words seriously.

 

God speaks to people throughout history in a variety of ways. There continue to be a number of people who are convinced that God is directing them, actually speaking to them. Many of these people have done wonderful things. I think of Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa of Calcutta. I also think of a number of you as I have witnessed things that you have done to help and aid others: to work at VBS, to teach Sunday School, to work at erecting this building, a beautiful house of worship where many are blessed; working at LUMS, even teaching others to preach in Third World countries. Many of you give sacrificially of your time, your talent and "your" money.

 

But in opposition to these people are others who also claim to hear God speaking to them. These people have done horrendous things, things that are criminal. Some people, vehemently opposed to abortion have worked to kill those who carry out abortions. Suicide bombers, claiming to have directly heard God, act on what they have "heard".

 

I shake my head, "No!" We may experience stirrings of hatred within us towards such people. They are wrong. This can't be God speaking to them. This must be the delusion of their own minds or worse yet, the very Evil One manipulating them into thinking such things, in order to act so destructively.

 

How then can we know when it is God speaking to us, or when it is something or someone else?

 

Abraham was convinced that God spoke to him, not just on this occasion but on a number of occasions. Abraham tried both to hear God and to then obey God.

 

So, it seems, so it is, this now. Can we imagine what Abraham may have been thinking or feeling? Oh, my God, could you really be asking me to do this thing, to kill my own Son, the Son you yourself, promised us: to slit his throat and burn his body?.... If I do this horrendous thing.... what will happen to my Sarah, Isaac's mother? If I do this horrendous thing, how will I ever be able to live with myself? And if I do this horrendous thing – what will happen to your promise? (

 

Nevertheless, in the midst of his thoughts, feelings, struggle – Abraham knows that God isn't just some idea. God's actions may not always fit our criteria of being "logical".  If God were to fit into human logic, then Isaac would never have been born. And promises that have changed the world would be dismissed as mere folly.  

 

Indeed, if God is limited to our standards of logic, our limited way of thinking, there could be no Jesus. Without Jesus, there would be no resurrection, no mercy for all who have so often spurned God by the way we treat others.

 

Somehow though, Abraham knows better, more deeply than we do. Abraham is faced with a choice. Will he obey and trust God in this harsh environment? Unlike us, he does not have the gift of retrospect, viewing Jesus from this side of the cross and resurrection. He could not know. He does not know how all this will turn out or even if it will. .

 

While Abraham hears his name being called and God speaking, he must act as a solitary individual, with no guarantee of clarity in terms of being terribly wrong and deeply deceived by himself or others. He did know that such an act is irreversible. If he does this thing it will usher in great pain for his own family and community.

 

Nevertheless, Abraham acts. He trusts God. How hard this is! ! Trusting God doesn't just involve a little bit here and there. It involves Abraham's all, not only for himself, but for his entire family.

 

Abraham does, what appears to be an unthinkable thing. He ties his beloved Isaac down. He raises the knife... BUT THEN AND THERE, miraculously GOD PROVIDES. And Isaac is spared!

 

We do not know, we cannot know the consequences of Abraham's obedience on his relationship with his beloved Isaac. But we are so blessed to glimpse the consequences of Abraham's obedience upon us.

 

We are present today. We are wonderfully privileged to hear, to experience how God chooses to act toward us. We see God give His only Son, His beloved Son on our behalf. In such giving, we are being freed from the grip of death and sin. Because of Him, we do not need to fear death or be paralyzed by any fear. Through Christ's death and resurrection we are being freed for life, for trusting God ourselves with everything we are and have. Abraham experienced it.  We can too – God does provide.

 

Are we listening? Will we obey- both in comfort and discomfort? God help us.  Amen.
!

 

OH, MY LORD!

Pentecost 2a, June 22, 2014 (Matthew 10:24-39; Genesis 21:8-21 and Romans 6:1b-11 in the b.g.)

The earliest confession of the first Christians was this: JESUS IS LORD! Their confession arose out of their circumstances, their understanding and experience of who Jesus is in the middle of their living and dying. "Lord" for them may have been the one who owned their land. "Lord" for them was the one you paid taxes to. "Lord" for them was also the one who had the responsibility to protect them from enemies. "Lord" was the person to be obeyed, respected and even feared.  

 

On the surface we are so disconnected from such understanding of the word, "Lord". Most of us own or at least buying our land. Nor would we think of the bank or the mortgage company as the One who would protect us from our enemies – or the one who might care for us when we are down and out.

 

Nevertheless, are there not ones whom we fear? Are there not powers or individuals that demand we obey them, no matter what? You know the old proverb – death and taxes – the certainties of our lives. Are they our "lords" – in the sense that we have ultimate fear of them, must obey them or do whatever we can to avoid them or minimize their bondage upon our lives? So, I ask, do we in any manner shape or form, experience anyone or anything as our "lord"?

 

I remember Harold and Emma. They loved each other. They had been married about 25 years when I met them. Life was good. But then Harold was diagnosed with cancer. The scene i am introducing you to finds Harold on his death bed. His big frame and 240 pound body has been reduced to what in many ways seems like a smallish man – now more like 180 pounds. His petite but oh, so strong Emma is beside him, holding his hand as his death draws near. Following a significant time of silence save for her quiet sobs, Harold opens his eyes. He takes Emma's tiny hands in his large, calloused hands. He utters words I will not forget. "Emma, what we have is the cross! Nothing and no one can ever take that from us." In the literal face of death, Harold speaks what for him is the truth – not a philosophy or merely a theology to be written in a book or spoken in a sermon but the very foundation of his life. He is "betting" – everything on this as he makes the journey towards death. This Jesus who dies on the cross is Harold's  Lord. And nothing can separate him from the power and love of his Lord. Thanks be to God!

 

None of this is easy: such living, loving, caring, dying. Jesus' own life is so far from conflict free. How he sometimes struggles with his disciples who so often just don't get it. They left him alone when he needed them most. His own parents don't begin to understand who He is. Even his mother, as he is beginning to teach and travel occasionally thought that he had lost his mind. He says something very interesting then. His "family" are those who do his will. In addition to all of this he often was in conflict with the authorities – including the religious authorities who don't hesitate to accuse him of BEING EVIL. 

 

Yet none of this deters him, from being and doing His Father's will. So it is, he moves on - reaching out, caring, speaking truth into the midst of all that is. In doing so, he draws others to him. He then sends them out to share this amazingly good news: God loves them. Any and all other powers do not have the final nor the lasting word. Indeed God loves all people and seeks to reclaim them from any and all powers of evil and death. The disciples are to go and live in ways that reflect his life, death and resurrection.

 

So he called his earliest disciples. So it is, he calls us. The very word disciple means LEARNER. We are to watch him, to study his words, his ways. We are to obey him. When there are conflicts of interest, competing forces demanding our attendance and allegiance, He wills us to be clear about whom we can trust, whom we are to ultimately obey. He is our Lord. Not our families. Not the government. Not sport. Not work.... not that any of these things aren't or can't be good. They each are gifts to us from God. They each have roles to play in our lives. But they are not to be our gods. They cannot bear the weight of life, nor the powers of evil or death. Only God can take on such responsibility. Remember, know Jesus is God. As the earliest Christians claimed Jesus is our Lord and our God! 

 

Remember, know – it is God who gives us, all people, all creation life.

 

Remember, know, it is God who in Jesus lives, suffers and dies to take on and ultimately overcome the powers of evil: death, hatred, violence, fear. WOW! Is it any wonder that at their best some of the most effective recovery programs for people caught in addictive behavior have as one of their main mantras, "LET GO AND LET GOD!"

 

How we need help with this!

 

Today Canadian Lutheran World Relief calls us to remember the refugees in the world. CLWR has from its inception been in the "refugee business". Some of us – or at the very least perhaps our parents or grandparents were brought to this country under the auspices of CLWR. Thanks be to God!

 

Tragically the number of people who are forced to flee their homes and become refugees continues to multiply. War and genocide are tragically ongoing realities. Do you realize that there are over 3 million Syrian refugees alone? Can you imagine if  nearly ten percent of Canadians  were forced to flee for our lives, leaving friends, homes, possessions and businesses behind? How would we survive? Might we then realize our NEED for the help of God directly and through others that God was moving to give of themselves to help us?  

 

Make no mistake. Jesus calls upon us to remember, to pray for, to do what we can to help others, especially those who are refugees.

 

Why? Because Jesus is our Lord and their Lord. Since Jesus loves the world we too are called to love the world. Since Jesus continues to bless us, we are called to bless others with gifts of our time, talents and so-called "possessions".

 

Dear God, the Holy Spirit is alive. That Spirit calls us to faith which is an active obedient trust of Jesus who calls us in ongoing ways to a living learning that involves ongoing service. 

 

To be sure: Jesus loves you – all the way to the cross, into the grave and up, out of the grave. Jesus loves us – all refugees too – all the way to the cross, whatever that may be as they flee their homes, desperately hoping to find some "camp" where they can lay their heads, have a drink and receive some food to feed their kids. 

 

Jesus loves us? Whom then are we loving, following?

 

May God move us, even drive us, to look closer, to see and learn. May we see God's face, even our children's faces and our own faces in the faces of the boys and girls around us, in the faces of the boys and girls, teenagers, adults and elderly in refugee camps. In so seeing, may we also hear God calling us to do what we can – because of who we are, God's sons and daughters. Knowing that we are moved to act trusting that death and evil as strong and mighty as they are, WILL NOT WIN THE DAY!

 

Harold is right. Dear people we have the cross. Jesus is Lord. Because he lives, we too can live. Because he lives the world will and must be loved.  Amen.

DO TELL!

Sermon, Trinity Sunday, June 15 (Also Father's Day) Genesis 1:1-2:4a AND Matthew 28:16-20

Grace to you and peace, from God the Creator, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, three in One.

I am so thankful that we are here in this place. We may have come to church today for a number of reasons. We may have come to witness and be part of Lilja's baptism. We may have come because we know the community and have friends here. We may be drawn to this community by the music. We might even desire to hear God, to receive God's ongoing blessings. Or, we may have come because it's Father's day and that day somehow draws us to worship. We may have many different reasons for being here.  Whatever our reason/s, it is good we are here! 

 

Have you ever reflected upon the reality that each of us is a uniquely fashioned miracle of God?  I don't just mean our DNA, although our genetic code is amazing. Each of us is created by God. The entire universe is also being created by God. This is MIRACULOUS.

 

Regardless of how we feel - whether we are on "top of the world" or in the "depths of despair" we are still created by God.  This means that we are not just OK or even somehow merely "passable". God doesn't make junk. We are of God or as the first Genesis account of creation puts it, "made in God's image". This is good. We must know this as we watch Lilja being baptized . . .

 

Yet, even in this that is good, there is not smooth sailing. Reading a bit farther in the Genesis account we encounter Adam and Eve. They are part of that which is of God, that which is good. But they still want MORE. They want to be . . . LIKE GOD. This creates incredible problems. As a result it's not long before Adam throws Eve "under the bus". In what seems like merely a few moments more their first born son Cain kills his brother Abel. Unfortunately this reality of violence and hatred continues to be played out both among and by us.

 

So it is, WE NEED TRANSFORMATION, even in, especially in the midst of our personal uniqueness.  Whenever we find ourselves wanting to be like God, wanting what we want, when we want it, we need forgiveness, hope, new beginnings.

 

Miraculously, God refuses to give up on us. So, God becomes human in Jesus.   Many doubt this – it seems so very unlikely. Is it possible for anyone to love us that much – to become one of us, to show us in the midst of our worry, our violence, our refusal to accept him, that He steadfastly loves us? Can anyone love us that much? . . . 

 

Many of us know the story. But do we know THAT THIS STORY IS OUR STORY?  Jesus' life, death, suffering and resurrection, His call to follow Him is our very gift of life from God! 

 

God becomes human by being born to an, oh so young girl, in a back woods town in a seemingly insignificant country. This baby boy, God in the flesh, grows up. He reaches out to people in unprecedented ways. He accepts them. He is honest with them.  He moves them to love themselves and then to begin to honestly care for and with others. This One's living, dying and resurrection shows us the face of God. In Jesus we are being encountered by God's power - not in the sense of "yah better look out!" but rather in the sense of, "Here I am. See me!" In seeing me, behold my love for you and this world. –In me all things can be made new, including you.

 

What will we do we do? Some of our forefathers and foremothers wouldn't trust him. They couldn't stand him. They kill him. Their refusal to trust isn't really so different from ours – we who won't listen or can't listen because we are so frantically trying to "survive" or "make it".

 

But God refuses to give up on us. Neither death nor the forces of evil can keep God from reaching out to us in Jesus Christ.

 

On the third day God raises Jesus. The risen Jesus has a body that can be seen, touched and held onto. But his risen body doesn't have the limitations of our bodies. The risen Jesus speaks to all who will hear.  Through some of the women he tells his disciples to go back to Galilee where he had first met them. They go. Once in Galilee they see him! They even worship him but some doubt.... 

 

Do you know their experience? In those moments when we glimpse him, sense his presence, his direction – we too sometimes worship him. How sweet that is:  to sing, to pray, to receive the bread and the wine – to greet the other with God's peace, touching hands, sharing a smile, a hug. But there are also other times when our other realities swamp us: our personal failures, the pain and loss of death, betrayal. Sometimes, we too are consumed by doubt.

 

But he is not deterred. He speaks truthfully. "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples (learners/followers) of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." 

 

It is here that we so often get stuck. We, that's YOU AND ME, are to go and make disciples of others - any and all others? Our friends, our colleagues – even the others in our family? How can we? How dare we? So many have their own ideas, their own "gods" or just as likely, none at all! And they know us – our inconsistencies, our hypocrisy!

 

We are so far from perfect. Sometimes we too forget God. Like Adam and Eve we wish things were "easier" for us, that we could do whatever we want.  Some days we are just trying to get through today. So, sometimes we also doubt, God.  

We are not so different from those earlier disciples. Thankfully Jesus doesn't give up on them. Nor does Jesus give up on us. We too are called to go, to follow him, to baptize and teach all that He has commanded us. We do not live alone, nor do we follow this living Jesus alone. He is with us. That is His promise.

 

Dear people – today Lilja is baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. God marks her with the sign of the cross and seals her with God's own Spirit. What a promise from God to each of us, all of us. It is our distinct privilege and responsibility to tell her about and show her, this loving, holy, merciful and just God who continues to fashion us and the universe. 

 

This is our purpose our reason for being anywhere: to bear God's creative and redeeming word to the world. So, Jesus sends us to each other and to others. God in Jesus Christ loves us, has died for us and is alive. DO TELL  in our own unique ways, for the sake of Christ and the world. Amen.